It is known to provide controls for common household appliances that provide an illuminated indication of their setting, for example, using LEDs, backlit LCDs, or plasma type displays. Such illuminated controls are aesthetically attractive, allow the appliance to be easily used in low light areas, and provide an indication of their setting visible at a distance.
Present electrical and electromechanical controls for washing machines and the like provide an operator knob having a pointer, for example an embossed line or arrow, that may be rotated into alignment with preprinted indicia indicating the control's setting. Often the indicia are printed on an opaque, enameled metal sheet. A rotational control of this type is both familiar and provides an intuitive representation of the various machine cycles, both during setting of the machine and during its execution of cycle stages when the knob may rotate as each stage is completed. Nevertheless, operation of this type of rotation control in lowlight settings can be difficult.